Oodles Noodles is one of the original Asian Fusion restaurants in Washington, having opened in 1997. You have more choices now, including the much prettier Teaism, and the trendsetting, upscale TenPenh. Consider Oodles if you are a famished bargain hunter, since the kitchen serves up plenty of cheap one-dish meals that can satisfy. You can order dumplings, Szechuan dan dan noodles (egg noodles), Vietnamese vermicelli, and Thai drunken noodles, among others. Many of the items come in a soup, such as the Shanghai roast pork noodles soup and the Siam noodles soup, which is a spicy sweet-and-sour broth with shrimp, minced chicken, and squid.

But not everything is a noodle. Appetizers include satays, spring onion cakes, curry puffs, and vegetable spring rolls. Curries, teriyaki, and other spicy non-noodle fare round out the menu. I'd recommend the ginger salad and the nasi goreng (Indonesian chicken fried rice with chicken satay and egg).